Tharry91

Hey guys XJ guy here wanting to switch over to the ZJ. Just wanting to know things to look for, I do want the v8 and not the awd tcase. Just trying to see what years to look for and things to be looking for. Thanks guys

basegrinder

I had a 95, in VERY VERY VERY nice condition... some jerk ran a red light and it got totaled...have a 93 now.... so my observations are, looking at them in mild climate California:

Look for the upcountry package. I got mine and actually didn't even know it was...lucked out.

Small but noticeable lift (some say 1", some say 2"...) tow hooks under front bumper, skid plates.

not all of them with the tow hooks are an upcountry...*should* have a sticker indicating it is behind the spare tire on the inside...

Also the older ones, 93 and 94 have blue shocks (unless they've been swapped)

pretty good write up about the upcountry, although the main focus is making a "normal" zj into an upcountry:

http://www.kevinsoffroad.com/techart...coupgrade.html


Most have trashed leather--I looked for a year til I came across mine with great seats.

All of them pretty much have the false "coolant sensor bad" warning on the VIC (vehicle info center) Many have the false "rear lamp failure".... Many will have the harmless "service 4wd switch" message....

And what I've seen while I looked at them for a YEAR til finding one I wanted, plus looking at the ones at the junk yard for parts-

Dead rear gate/window struts--pretty much normal...

Power locks might not all be working or intermittent.

96+ had rear tailgate window that opens separately--and more modern dash

Coolant reservoir cap might be worn out--and the replacements from the auto parts stores NEVER fit right. Never. Use a reservoir cap for a Volvo 940 Turbo--(only 3 years for that car, 93-96 or something, they are all the same) $6 at auto parts store.

AC will be ice cold or totally dead...

Most will have broken fog lights if its 93-95 (moved under the bumper with the 96 model)

93 has no rear head rests, but they are a pain in the *** to store if you want to put the back seats down anyway.

Alarm might not work, the remotes almost never work. I found a $45 replacement remote that did on the web. Plenty of instructions on the web on how to program it. Its a stupid infra red, not radio signal remote, so you have to stand by the window to use it...aim at ceiling console...

Alarm might go off when you open doors--found this is because its tied in with the dome lights.... if your dome lights dont come on when you unlock--the alarm will go off- cancel by using the tailgate lock or passenger lock. I have to wiggle the key sometimes...and sometimes give up and unlock the tailgate or passenger side.

There IS a fix for this, by disabling it completely, taking a wire from the driver door and splicing it then grounding it...there are at least two write ups on this in this forum. I've been too lazy to bother.

Came with stupid keys that do NOT fit tailgate on some years--except for the one thinner bare metal key (no plastic on it) I got mine with one plain metal key, went to a locksmith to get a spare... make sure it is the thinner key or may not work --this was with my 93 and 95, might be different on other years. Might be different on even the same year, juding on how they changed so many things like what types of screws were used in the same spot from year to year...f'ing chrysler.........

radiator will probably wear out at about 150K miles.

Sometimes brake lights are dead, usually fixed by cleaning the plastic switch under the brake pedal.

Junk yard always seems to have a few ZJs with good seats. The "puffy" seats are 100x more comfortable than the other ones...(all the V8s had leather I'm pretty sure)

Power antenna probably dead, HUGE pain in the *** to change, have to rip out plastic in passenger wheel well. I drove through a tree and broke my...its only a little stub but mostly works.

93 GC didn't have an amp for the infiinity stereo...others, its under the rear seat on driver side.

Speakers probably blown.

Replacing rear tailgate struts, some early years (maybe some later too) have a different left and right, because of a tab that goes into the tailgate. Make sure to look (you will see it easily) and dont' bother with auto parts stores, they well generic ones that will NOT fit even if their stupid book says it does. I found some on Amazon that were proper left and right.

They say some 96-97 had problems with the engine sludging up with dirty oil

Prices vary a LOT, at least on craiglist in my area , don't be in a rush.


if I think of anything else, and can find this thread later, I'll post it

Willys55

I bought both mine on a whim, didn't have nearly the troubles the poor chap above claimed. As with all vehicles there are issues that are common to certain models , as for the VIC(vehicle information center) they have electrical issues, 90% of the time it's because of a bad wire, not the sensors. On my 95 I unplugged it because I didn't have the bloody time to fix it. At present I have 4 ZJ's 93,94,95,96 93+94 are V8's and all of them run top notch. Good luck with the one you get and enjoy.

basegrinder

well as stated...those are problems I saw after looking at ZJs for sale for a YEAR.

and looking at the ones at the junk yards

dave1123

My 97 ZJ was my first Jeep and boy, did I take a bath. I bought it with my ego, not my head. It was a 4.0 and ran very well, but after putting over $3000 into it rebuilding the trans, rear end, and the entire front driveline, ie;axle u-joints, wheel bearings, ball joints, all 4 brake calipers and rotors, I had a decent vehicle. The radiator and alternator were new when I bought it.

Just look before you leap. All of what Basegrinder said I can agree with. Just don't make the stupid mistake I did.

Bustedback

My 95 Laredo has been one of the most reliable vehicles out of the 25+ I've owned. I have 206k miles on it and runs like a noisy Swiss watch. I replaced and repaired quite a few things on it in the last three years, but it has never left me on the side of the road. The only thing I don't like about my ZJ is the sunroof. The only thing that has failed on it was the alternator, and that was the original with 200k on it.
Things to look for and avoid: Hacked up wiring and rigged electronics, home brewed lift kits, rust and poorly repaired rust, mismatched or worn out tires (almost a thousand bucks to fix right off the bat), salvage titles, if you suspect flood damage, and if the seller says, "It's only a 15 dollar part and ten minutes to fix it.", walk away. Why didn't fix it before trying to sell the vehicle? Be aware there are a bunch of flood vehicles out there from Sandy, don't get stuck with one.

Tharry91

Yeah I'm just looking to build a reliable daily driver/weekend warrior, like I said I'm used to the xj's but need something a little more powerful for towing my boat.

Bustedback

Look for a 98 with the 5.9 V8, kind of rare, but they can be found.